We think we have it bad

"I have to talk to someone! Tomorrow...it's very crucial."

Sunday mornings I am always found at or around the Guest Reception table. Kelly and I do our best to scope the crowd of 500+ people creating a bottleneck in the lobby of MCC as some struggle to leave one service and others press onward into the next service. Usually you can tell by their eyes. The new ones don't like to make eye contact and usually focus their attention above the crowd in a search to find the nearest exit. It's a welcoming atmosphere, but fear is what generally overtakes them and with impulse they want out.

This Sunday a woman threw herself in my path and with a look of panic exclaimed those haunting words, "I have to talk to someone!" She was desperate and she wanted me to find someone, anyone, who would give her instantaneous relief.

Today she met with us. Kelly and I sat with her for nearly two hours. She's had the run around for most of her life and has experienced things that I could never imagine. I can't give details, but her words raked my heart. She needs hope. She needs comfort. She needs community. She needs compassion. She needs the church. So often I have taken for granted that I have love anywhere I turn. I have the comfort, community, and hope. I know that God is ever-present and I have experienced his warm embrace in my own life's gutter moments. I remember feeling like nothing made sense. I remember questioning God. I remember wondering what tomorrow was going to bring when I couldn't stand thinking about today. And I had God. I belonged to him. I can't even imagine how someone outside of faith can experience those times and survive without hope.

The conversation ended positively. She left with a greater understanding of God, Christ, and a relationship with him. She left with knowledge of the Bible (which she had because of a class she took last summer) and how to use it. She left encouraged and hopeful. I just pray that she can be strengthened and not give up as her world slowly turns from black to gray to white.